Selective production of singlet oxygen from zinc-etching hierarchically porous biochar for sulfamethoxazole degradation

Porous carbons are appealing low-cost and metal-free catalysts in persulfate-based advanced oxidation processes. In this study, a family of porous biochar catalysts (ZnBC) with different porous structures and surface functionalities are synthesized using a chemical activation agent (ZnCl2). The functional biochars are used to activate persulfate for sulfamethoxazole (SMX) degradation. ZnBC-3 with the highest content of ketonic group (CO, 1.25...